- Angle
- 60 degrees
- Symbol
- ⚹︎ (U+26B9)
- Commonly used orb
- Up to 4 degrees
- Signs apart
- Two
Why it is called a sextile
The word comes from the Latin for a sixth part. Sixty degrees is exactly one sixth of the 360 degree circle, and six sextiles in a row close the loop, the way six equilateral triangles meet around a point to make a hexagon. In harmonic terms it is the 6th harmonic of the circle.
The usual orb is smaller than for the square or trine. Most astrologers accept about 4 degrees either side, a few go to 6, which gives a working band of 56 to 64 degrees. The narrower allowance is the old rule that the weaker an aspect is by nature, the closer it needs to be exact to be felt.
The sextile symbol
The glyph ⚹︎ (Unicode U+26B9, named SEXTILE) is a six-armed star: three lines crossing at a single point, so the arms are spaced 60 degrees apart. It is one of the few aspect glyphs that draws the angle itself, which is why it is easy to tell from the square and trine symbols that borrow plain geometric shapes.
Which signs make a sextile
Every sign has two sextile partners, two signs behind it and two signs ahead of it. The two partners are always of a compatible element: fire with air, and earth with water.
| Sign | Sextile signs | Elements |
|---|---|---|
| ♈︎ Aries | Aquarius and Gemini | Fire with Air |
| ♉︎ Taurus | Pisces and Cancer | Earth with Water |
| ♊︎ Gemini | Aries and Leo | Air with Fire |
| ♋︎ Cancer | Taurus and Virgo | Water with Earth |
| ♌︎ Leo | Gemini and Libra | Fire with Air |
| ♍︎ Virgo | Cancer and Scorpio | Earth with Water |
| ♎︎ Libra | Leo and Sagittarius | Air with Fire |
| ♏︎ Scorpio | Virgo and Capricorn | Water with Earth |
| ♐︎ Sagittarius | Libra and Aquarius | Fire with Air |
| ♑︎ Capricorn | Scorpio and Pisces | Earth with Water |
| ♒︎ Aquarius | Sagittarius and Aries | Air with Fire |
| ♓︎ Pisces | Capricorn and Taurus | Water with Earth |
An opportunity that has to be taken up
Traditional texts place the sextile with the trine as a soft or harmonious aspect, and they describe it as weaker than the trine. The planets do not share an element the way trine partners do, so the link is a bridge between two different temperaments instead of a single flow. In practice astrologers say the sextile lends skill and willingness, but it tends to stay in the background until a transit, a deliberate choice or a third planet switches it on.
The older method also asks whether the sextile is applying or separating. An applying sextile, with the faster planet still approaching the exact angle, is described as the opening that is about to be offered, and a separating one as an opening that is closing again. The distinction is small, but it is the sort of detail that decides which of two similar charts is read as the more active.
A useful picture is a door that is not locked. A square would be a wall, a trine would be an open hallway, and a sextile is a door you still have to walk through.
Sextile and trine side by side
- Angle: 60 degrees for the sextile, 120 degrees for the trine.
- Signs: two apart for the sextile, four apart for the trine.
- Shared element: none for the sextile, which pairs fire with air or earth with water; the trine always shares one element.
- Typical orb: about 4 degrees for the sextile, about 8 for the trine.
- Tradition: both are soft, but the trine is called effortless while the sextile is called available.
Find it in your own chart
A symbol or an aspect only means something against a whole chart. Look up your placements, then read the planets in their signs and the houses they fall in.
Frequently asked questions
What does a sextile mean in a birth chart?
It marks a supportive link between two planets, one that astrologers read as a talent or opening which responds to effort instead of arriving by itself.
How many degrees is a sextile?
Exactly 60 degrees, with a commonly used orb of about 4 degrees either side, so a sextile can run from about 56 to 64 degrees.
Are sextiles weaker than trines?
Tradition says so. The sextile has a smaller orb and no shared element, so it is described as a quieter, more conditional support than the trine.
Which planets can form a sextile?
Any two planets or chart points can, as long as they land about 60 degrees apart. The two signs will be two apart, such as Aries and Gemini.
What is the sextile symbol?
It is ⚹︎, a six-armed star, found at Unicode U+26B9. Some chart software also prints a plain asterisk instead.
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